Zarrinnaal or Zarrin Naal (Persian: زرين نعل) is the name of a dynasty of Kurdish tribal chiefs and state officials belonging to the Zarrin Kafsh tribe and originated from Sanandaj in Kurdistan Province of Iran. Their heads with the title of Beyg, Beyk or Beg (lit."lord") were the Aghas of Senneh ("Masters of Sanandaj") and ruled their fiefdom during the time of four hundred years when the Safavids (r. 1501-1722), Afsharids (r. 1736–1796) and finally Qajar dynasty (r. 1785–1925) reigned in Iran.
Origin and meaning of the name
About the origin of the name "Zarrinnaal" various stories are told: One says the family's ancestor rode in a battle against a foreign power a horse with golden horseshoes (Persian Zarrin Naal) and therefore was named after. Another says that this ancestor was sent as Persia's envoy to the Mughal Empire for border negotiations with the Indians. To show his wealth on this special ceremonial occasion and to convince his partners to agree, he once put golden horseshoes on his horse. When he took a ride the animal lost its horseshoes, people picked them up and so forth nicknamed him Zarrinnaal. This also reports M. Lesan ol-Molk in his historical chronicle. In fact there was a certain Mohammad Ali Beyg sent as ambassador to the Mughal court by Shah Abbas!A third story tells us that this ancestor wanted to marry a shah's daughter but the king denied to give him his daughter's hand. Thus, he rode on a horse with golden horseshoes to impress the king and finally could pick up his bride. However, after this man his entire clan was called in the very same way and his descendants were entitled "Zarrinnaal" in honour to that forefather.
In fact the term naal or to be more precise na'al (نعل) means in modern Persian of today "horseshoe", but also is Nominative Singular of the Arab word na'eleyn meaning "shoes, slippers", and was the common term for slippers. So, like Zarrinkafsh the term Zarrinnaal means "Golden Shoe" as well, but in a more elaborated Arabized way often used in former times and especially among the Kurds.
Tribal heads and their history
When the Persian shahs conquered their empire and established their supremacy over the western Kurdish principalities the Zarrinnaal family began to reach local prominence in Kurdistan. Its members were installed in military and administrative posts and aided the Ardalan rulers (r. 1187 to 1867) in governing their province.
Mohammad Ali Beyg Zarrinnaal
Mohammad Ali Beyg called Zarrinnaal (lit. "Golden Horseshoe"), whose family belonged to the clan of Zarrin Kafsh, had been settled in Kurdistan minimum since the year 1448 A.D. and possessed the area of Sanandaj as their hereditary fief, was ordered by Shah Abbas I the Great to make war on the Ottomans; and on August 24, 1605 with the aid of his troops from the Mokri tribes could reconquer the Turkish occupied Kurdistan Province for Persia. After that he was made vicegerent (Persian vali) of that area and reigned probably from 1609 to 1615 as governor and was head of the administration and army, chief judge and legislator. There, he himself and his entire tribal confederacy (Persian il) were known and henceforth called by the name of "Zarrinnaal". In 1631 Mohammad ‘Ali Beyg was the ambassador sent to the Mughal court by Shah Abbas of Iran, arriving in time for the New Year festival in March 1631. Iran and Mughal India went in negotiations about the province of Kandahar, once part of the Mughal empire, then given by Humayoun to Shah Tahmasp and annexed by Humayoun's successor Akbar. In 1622 Shah Abbas had reconquered Kandahar as his rightly possession and a treaty with Jahangir should secure this status quo. Mohammad Ali Beyg remained in the Mughal empire until October 1632, during which time his portrait was painted by the royal artist, Hashim. The painting is inscribed in Persian ‘Likeness of Mohammad ‘Ali Beyg, ambassador, the work of Hashim’.